


Notes Concerning a Kerfuffle (or, Why OtherCat’s VLD Fics Are Locked and Comment Moderated)

by MetaCat (OtherCat)



Category: Meta - Fandom, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Discourse, Fandom, Meta, Other, communication problems, kerfuffle, mostly mine, wank
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-09
Updated: 2017-07-09
Packaged: 2018-11-29 20:24:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11448396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OtherCat/pseuds/MetaCat
Summary: A story of a kerfuffle I got into when I entered the Voltron: Legendary Defender fandom in August, 2016.





	Notes Concerning a Kerfuffle (or, Why OtherCat’s VLD Fics Are Locked and Comment Moderated)

So, I entered the Voltron Legendary Defender in the summer of 2016. My main reason was a combination of nostalgia for the old dubbed Voltron cartoon from the 80s and a sincere interest in the new storyline. I was not at the time aware of the level of “Discourse” in the fandom, or at least, not as aware as I probably should have been, since I was vaguely aware that there was some drama and interpersonal difficulties within the as yet small fandom.

It should be noted that I am used to being a somewhat obscure writer on the very edges of any fandom I participate in. I am also used to being able to write critiques and meta about the fan fic and canon material with only limited interaction from others in the fandom. My fic critiques usually involve stylistic choices, worldbuilding and characterization as well as plot. I sometimes also critique grammar. I am generally very careful about not naming names of either the author or the fic except when I am actually reccing a story, and other steps to ensure a writer doesn’t receive critique they didn’t want or ask for. (This is a policy I slowly developed from my years on Livejournal and eventually Dreamwidth. I’ve always been very open to interacting with the writers I’ve critiqued, though I generally don’t beta or offer to beta. I am generally a bit more snarky toward third parties wanting to defend the honor of their friends.)  

Unfortunately, my archival (as opposed to promotional/conversational) use of tags on Tumblr got me in trouble with a writer in the fandom who felt the need to defend the honor of a [work I critiqued](http://othercat2.tumblr.com/post/149049928581/sob), roundly scolding me for “putting hate in the tags.” All attempts to communicate with the individual turned out to be a waste of time and energy, since the writer was more interested in attacking me and engaging in a number of hostile behaviors toward me and others who disagreed with her arguments. (I think I was supposed to be cowed and upset, begging them for forgiveness. Instead I was anxious at apparently not being understood, confused, and increasingly aggravated.) I at first privatized the post, but Tumblr’s “privatization” function makes it impossible to locate unless you’re willing to wade through your dashboard posts, so I eventually replaced the original post with a notice and link to a Dreamwidth echo.

Eventually I withdrew from the conversation, and indicated that it was over and done with. I was extremely pissed off and considerably soured on the fandom. At that point, I was seriously considering pulling out completely and even made a few notes to that effect on one of my WIPs. This was of course, mostly my anxiety and depression talking, and it took a while for me to calm down. Sometime during the cooling down period I discovered a few “dirty secrets” concerning the level of sheer wank in the VLD fandom. (At least, they were “secrets” to me. I hadn’t been paying very much attention, and didn’t realize the sheer amount of toxicity. A writer was literally _driven_ from the fandom for if I’m recalling correctly, writing Lance as Mexican instead of Cuban. Good grief.)

I decided that the best course of action to take would be to severely limit my interactions with the fandom. This meant no story reviews, no recs, no critiques or meta on Tumblr. I also decided to limit my interaction with fic and other writers in the fandom in general. (My basic approach is that the writer who initially took me to task is representative of the fandom, and the template for all other members of the fandom, except for the ones I already know not to be like the writer.) To further control interaction with my stories, I decided to make sure anonymous comments were not allowed and all other comments were moderated. I also “locked” the fics so that you had to be logged in to read them.

The entire situation was extremely upsetting for me, and I ended up writing a vent-fic that more or less completely dominated any of my other story ideas, WIPs, meta or reviews. (Though more of the reason why I trailed off on working on any other stories/projects in the VLD fandom was because I was and am much more focused on Homestuck and the WIPs I have going there.)   

My policy of locking my VLD fics and ensuring that comments were moderated turned out to be a very good thing. I ended up in a [second very mild kerfuffle](http://othercat.dreamwidth.org/1542053.html) from someone who became incensed that I didn’t want to interact with them. The reason why I didn’t want to interact with them was because their comments were rude, confusing and kind of obnoxious. I will admit to being more than a little sarcastic and snarky, but I feel that I was at least partly justified, because the commenter somehow became convinced that I was holding back details and excising large portions of the story, and verbally attacked me. They generally didn’t seem to understand the concepts of unreliable narrator and leaving certain things to the imagination of the reader as valid stylistic choices. They also seemed to be angry because I didn’t want to engage with them and became increasingly incensed and insulting about it.

I currently have no idea if I’m going to continue writing fic in the fandom. I would like to go back to working on my one WIP but I’m not having a lot of inspiration for it, or really any other story. I also have three ongoing WIPs in Homestuck, one fic in Chrono Crusade and also an original fic that I’m working on. Time will tell if I’m eventually able to get back to it or not. Also, I still haven’t made it all the way through season two yet. (My lack of enthusiasm stretched to the canon material, I’m afraid.) I will probably write more meta, eventually, I think. I’m currently planning on expanding an essay related to a very vicious debate I got into with some people who decided they hated Allura for being A Horrible Person Who Probably Wasn’t a Real Princess Because She Doesn’t Act like One, And Also She’s Racist.

**Author's Note:**

> At some point I'm going to have to remember to put the full drama on the Dreamwidth.


End file.
